HMS Bream (1807)
Encyclopedia
HMS Bream was a Royal Navy
Ballahoo-class schooner
of four 12-pounder carronade
s and a crew of 20. The prime contractor for the vessel was Goodrich & Co., in Bermuda
, and she was launched in 1807. Bream operated primarily in North American waters and had an uneventful career until the War of 1812
. She then captured two small American privateers and assisted in the recovery of a third, much larger one. She also captured a number of small prizes before she was sold or broken up in 1816.
. In April Sub-Lieutenant George Gover Miall, the commander of the schooner Chebuctoo, was ordered to act as Lieutenant-Commander of the Bream.Chebuctoo was probably a colonial government vessel. Miall sailed Bream to the Leeward Islands.Drury was appointed to the cutter Sylvia on 3 July. Miall was confirmed as a Lieutenant on 11 April 1808. While Bream was in the Chesapeake Bay
a mutiny broke out that Lieutenant Bartholomew George Smith Day helped suppress. Miall removed to Duguay Trouin on 15 June 1809.
On 15 July 1809, Lieutenant Henry Dilkes Byng took command, serving in Bream until October when Sir John Borlase Warren
appointed him to command Goree, then in Halifax. He was confirmed in the command on 12 December. His replacement, in January 1810, was Lieutenant Robert Heriot Barclay.
On 17 August 1810 her commander became (acting) Lieutenant John Simpson.He was confirmed 14 December 1811. At some point in 1810, a Lieutenant Pollard may have assumed command for a short while.
While in Bream, Simpson carried specie to St. John's, Newfoundland and was frozen up at Louisburg
, Cape Breton
, which materially harmed his health. On 14 November 1811 Simpson was promoted to Lieutenant.
On 24 July, Colibri
sighted three vessels off Cape Sable and gave chase to one, a schooner. When Colibri got close she exchanged signals with the schooner, which turned to be Bream. Colibri then chased and took two other vessels, which turned out to be an American privateer and a bark, her prize. The privateer was the Catherine; eight days out of Boston; she had taken only the bark. Catherine, under the command of Francis A. Burnham, was pierced for 16 guns but mounted 14 long six-pounder guns and had a crew of 88 men. She had suffered one man killed and one wounded before she surrendered. Her casualties were low as the crew had taken refuge below decks.
On 9 August Bream captured the American 3-gun privateer sloop Pythagoras and her crew of 35, under the command of Cyrus Libby. The capture took place off Shelburne
and took 20 minutes, during which the American suffered two men wounded.
In October Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren
dispatched Shannon
and Bream to rescue the crew and offload the money aboard the frigate , which had been wrecked on Sable Island
. They arrived on 10 October and retrieved both crew (only one of whom had drowned), and the specie. Whilst carrying this out, Shannon encountered and subsequently captured an enemy privateer, which she took back to Halifax with her. In October 1812 Simpson volunteered, with his whole crew, and joined Statira, under Captain Hassard Stackpoole, to cruise with her. However, Simpson returned to Britain as an invalid in 1813.
Lieutenant Constantine Brown replaced Simpson at Halifax. From late 1812 to 1813 Bream served in the Bay of Fundy
as part of a small squadron under the command of Captain Alexander Gordon in . In November 1812, Bream and the privateer Brunswicker of Saint John, New Brunswick
, chased four American privateers from Passamaquoddy Bay
. Brunswickers replacement was the sloop Hunter. She and Bream cruised down the Bay of Fundy on 16 December.
Brown’s replacement was Lieutenant Charles Hare. Under Hare's command Bream engaged in a successful campaign of guerre de course against American shipping on the Maine coast. Typical of the prizes made was the capture made on 23 April, when Bream captured the 85-ton (burthen) sloop Semiramis on her way to Boston from Portsmouth river. Most of these captures were made off the Kennebec River in the general vicinity of Monhehan Island, but occasional forays further south were made. On 19 May, Rattler, with Bream's assistance, captured the American 18-gun privateer Alexander off Kenebank (Kennebunk, Maine
). Rattler drove Alexander, which was returning to Salem after a 10 week cruise, on shore. She had had a crew of 127 under her master, B. Crowninshield, but only 70 were still aboard when Rattler captured her. The rest of the crew escaped though several drowned as they swam from her. Bream helped Rattler get Alexander off.
A week later, Bream captured the sloop Branch, of 78 tons, from Boston, bound to Dear Island. (sic; Deer Isle, on the eastern side of Penobscot Bay). Most captures were unarmed cargo vessels, but on 9 June, Bream and Hare captured the American privateer Wasp. The forty-ton Wasp had two 6-pounder guns and a crew of 33. Capturing her required an eight-hour running fight, including a fifty-minute battle at close quarters off Brier Island
in the Bay of Fundy. Wasp had been out 18 days but had captured nothing. Despite the exchange of fire, the only casualty was one wounded American. Her captain placed the following advertisement in the Saint John, New Brunswick, Courier of 27 June:
The head money for Wasp was finally paid in November 1831.
On 12 July Bream took the schooner Jefferson, of 99 tons, out of Boston. Two days later Bream captured the Triton, of 122 tons, bound for Kennebeck
from St. Thomas's. On the same day she captured the Betsey, of 117 tons, from Tortola
and bound for Portland.
On 21 or 24 September, the Canadian privateer Dart drove the American privateer Orange, a chebacco boat of two guns and 11 men, on to Fox Island in Machias Bay
on the coast of Maine
.A chebacco was a narrow-sterned boat formerly used in the New England and Canadian maritime fisheries; also known as a pinkstern or chebec. There the boats of Emulous
and Bream destroyed her.
Hare’s replacement was again Lieutenant Constantine Brown, who remained in command until 4 February 1814 when Lieutenant Thomas Beer took command in the Bay of Fundy, and served with her until he was placed on half-pay in September.
On 27 May, Bream captured the Pilgrim.
Beer commanded Bream at the capture of Moose Island (Maine) in July, and was present at the attack on Baltimore
on 13 September.
Bream also shared in the prize money for the ship Abeona and the schooners Franklin and Saucy Jack, which other ships had captured between 21 October and 6 November. Similarly Bream shared in the prize money for the schooner Mary and the goods from the transports Lloyd and Abeona, captured in the Chesapeake between 29 November and 19 December.
Bream was paid off in May 1815.
Royal Navy
The Royal Navy is the naval warfare service branch of the British Armed Forces. Founded in the 16th century, it is the oldest service branch and is known as the Senior Service...
Ballahoo-class schooner
Ballahoo class schooner
The Ballahoo class was a Royal Navy class of eighteen 4-gun schooners built under contract in Bermuda during the Napoleonic War. The class was an attempt by the Admiralty to harness the expertise of Bermudian shipbuilders who were renowned for their fast-sailing craft...
of four 12-pounder carronade
Carronade
The carronade was a short smoothbore, cast iron cannon, developed for the Royal Navy by the Carron Company, an ironworks in Falkirk, Scotland, UK. It was used from the 1770s to the 1850s. Its main function was to serve as a powerful, short-range anti-ship and anti-crew weapon...
s and a crew of 20. The prime contractor for the vessel was Goodrich & Co., in Bermuda
Bermuda
Bermuda is a British overseas territory in the North Atlantic Ocean. Located off the east coast of the United States, its nearest landmass is Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, about to the west-northwest. It is about south of Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada, and northeast of Miami, Florida...
, and she was launched in 1807. Bream operated primarily in North American waters and had an uneventful career until the War of 1812
War of 1812
The War of 1812 was a military conflict fought between the forces of the United States of America and those of the British Empire. The Americans declared war in 1812 for several reasons, including trade restrictions because of Britain's ongoing war with France, impressment of American merchant...
. She then captured two small American privateers and assisted in the recovery of a third, much larger one. She also captured a number of small prizes before she was sold or broken up in 1816.
Napoleonic Wars
She was commissioned in March 1807 under Lieutenant Augustus Vere Drury at HalifaxCity of Halifax
Halifax is a city in Canada, which was the capital of the province of Nova Scotia and shire town of Halifax County. It was the largest city in Atlantic Canada until it was amalgamated into Halifax Regional Municipality in 1996...
. In April Sub-Lieutenant George Gover Miall, the commander of the schooner Chebuctoo, was ordered to act as Lieutenant-Commander of the Bream.Chebuctoo was probably a colonial government vessel. Miall sailed Bream to the Leeward Islands.Drury was appointed to the cutter Sylvia on 3 July. Miall was confirmed as a Lieutenant on 11 April 1808. While Bream was in the Chesapeake Bay
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay is the largest estuary in the United States. It lies off the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by Maryland and Virginia. The Chesapeake Bay's drainage basin covers in the District of Columbia and parts of six states: New York, Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, Virginia, and West...
a mutiny broke out that Lieutenant Bartholomew George Smith Day helped suppress. Miall removed to Duguay Trouin on 15 June 1809.
On 15 July 1809, Lieutenant Henry Dilkes Byng took command, serving in Bream until October when Sir John Borlase Warren
John Borlase Warren
Sir John Borlase Warren, 1st Baronet , was an English admiral, politician and diplomat. Born in Stapleford, Nottinghamshire, he was the son and heir of John Borlase Warren of Stapleford and Little Marlow...
appointed him to command Goree, then in Halifax. He was confirmed in the command on 12 December. His replacement, in January 1810, was Lieutenant Robert Heriot Barclay.
On 17 August 1810 her commander became (acting) Lieutenant John Simpson.He was confirmed 14 December 1811. At some point in 1810, a Lieutenant Pollard may have assumed command for a short while.
While in Bream, Simpson carried specie to St. John's, Newfoundland and was frozen up at Louisburg
Louisburg
Louisburg is the name of some places in the United States of America and Canada:*Louisbourg, Nova Scotia, Canada *Louisburg, Kansas, United States of America*Louisburg, Minnesota, United States of America...
, Cape Breton
Cape Breton Regional Municipality, Nova Scotia
Cape Breton Regional Municipality often shortened to simply CBRM, is a regional municipality in Nova Scotia's Cape Breton County.According to the 2006 Census of Canada, the population within the Cape Breton Regional Municipality is 102,250...
, which materially harmed his health. On 14 November 1811 Simpson was promoted to Lieutenant.
War of 1812
Breams first duty in the war was the return of the two remaining seamen taken from USS Chesapeake in 1807. The British government did this as a conciliatory measure, but Bream, under Simpson's command, returned the men to the US Navy at Boston on 11 July 1812, nearly a month after war had already broken out between the two nations.On 24 July, Colibri
HMS Colibri (1809)
HMS Colibri was a French naval brig, built in 1808 that the British captured in 1809 and took into the Royal Navy under her existing name. She foundered in 1813 in Port Royal Sound , but without loss of life.-Capture:On 16 January 1809 Melampus captured Colibri off Barbuda, after her captain had...
sighted three vessels off Cape Sable and gave chase to one, a schooner. When Colibri got close she exchanged signals with the schooner, which turned to be Bream. Colibri then chased and took two other vessels, which turned out to be an American privateer and a bark, her prize. The privateer was the Catherine; eight days out of Boston; she had taken only the bark. Catherine, under the command of Francis A. Burnham, was pierced for 16 guns but mounted 14 long six-pounder guns and had a crew of 88 men. She had suffered one man killed and one wounded before she surrendered. Her casualties were low as the crew had taken refuge below decks.
On 9 August Bream captured the American 3-gun privateer sloop Pythagoras and her crew of 35, under the command of Cyrus Libby. The capture took place off Shelburne
Shelburne, Nova Scotia
Shelburne is a town located in southwestern Nova Scotia, Canada. It is the shire town of Shelburne County.-History:-Settlers:...
and took 20 minutes, during which the American suffered two men wounded.
In October Admiral Sir John Borlase Warren
John Borlase Warren
Sir John Borlase Warren, 1st Baronet , was an English admiral, politician and diplomat. Born in Stapleford, Nottinghamshire, he was the son and heir of John Borlase Warren of Stapleford and Little Marlow...
dispatched Shannon
HMS Shannon (1806)
HMS Shannon was a 38-gun Leda-class frigate of the Royal Navy. She was launched in 1806 and served in the Napoleonic Wars and the War of 1812...
and Bream to rescue the crew and offload the money aboard the frigate , which had been wrecked on Sable Island
Sable Island
Sable Island is a small Canadian island situated 300 km southeast of mainland Nova Scotia in the Atlantic Ocean. The island is a year-round home to approximately five people...
. They arrived on 10 October and retrieved both crew (only one of whom had drowned), and the specie. Whilst carrying this out, Shannon encountered and subsequently captured an enemy privateer, which she took back to Halifax with her. In October 1812 Simpson volunteered, with his whole crew, and joined Statira, under Captain Hassard Stackpoole, to cruise with her. However, Simpson returned to Britain as an invalid in 1813.
Lieutenant Constantine Brown replaced Simpson at Halifax. From late 1812 to 1813 Bream served in the Bay of Fundy
Bay of Fundy
The Bay of Fundy is a bay on the Atlantic coast of North America, on the northeast end of the Gulf of Maine between the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Nova Scotia, with a small portion touching the U.S. state of Maine...
as part of a small squadron under the command of Captain Alexander Gordon in . In November 1812, Bream and the privateer Brunswicker of Saint John, New Brunswick
Saint John, New Brunswick
City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...
, chased four American privateers from Passamaquoddy Bay
Passamaquoddy Bay
Passamaquoddy Bay is an inlet of the Bay of Fundy, between the U.S. state of Maine and the Canadian province of New Brunswick, at the mouth of the St. Croix River. Most of the bay lies within Canada, with its western shore bounded by Washington County, Maine. The southernmost point is formed by...
. Brunswickers replacement was the sloop Hunter. She and Bream cruised down the Bay of Fundy on 16 December.
Brown’s replacement was Lieutenant Charles Hare. Under Hare's command Bream engaged in a successful campaign of guerre de course against American shipping on the Maine coast. Typical of the prizes made was the capture made on 23 April, when Bream captured the 85-ton (burthen) sloop Semiramis on her way to Boston from Portsmouth river. Most of these captures were made off the Kennebec River in the general vicinity of Monhehan Island, but occasional forays further south were made. On 19 May, Rattler, with Bream's assistance, captured the American 18-gun privateer Alexander off Kenebank (Kennebunk, Maine
Kennebunk, Maine
Kennebunk is a town in York County, Maine, United States. The population was 1,075 people at the 2000 census. Including Kennebunkport , the population totals 14,196 people...
). Rattler drove Alexander, which was returning to Salem after a 10 week cruise, on shore. She had had a crew of 127 under her master, B. Crowninshield, but only 70 were still aboard when Rattler captured her. The rest of the crew escaped though several drowned as they swam from her. Bream helped Rattler get Alexander off.
A week later, Bream captured the sloop Branch, of 78 tons, from Boston, bound to Dear Island. (sic; Deer Isle, on the eastern side of Penobscot Bay). Most captures were unarmed cargo vessels, but on 9 June, Bream and Hare captured the American privateer Wasp. The forty-ton Wasp had two 6-pounder guns and a crew of 33. Capturing her required an eight-hour running fight, including a fifty-minute battle at close quarters off Brier Island
Brier Island
Brier Island is an island in the Bay of Fundy in Digby County, Nova Scotia.-Geography:The island is the western-most part of Nova Scotia and the southern end of the North Mountain ridge with Long Island lying immediately northeast; both islands constitute part of the Digby Neck...
in the Bay of Fundy. Wasp had been out 18 days but had captured nothing. Despite the exchange of fire, the only casualty was one wounded American. Her captain placed the following advertisement in the Saint John, New Brunswick, Courier of 27 June:
A CARD - Lieut. Hare, Commander of H.M. Schooner Bream, is respectfully requested to accept the sincere thanks of Captain Ernest A. Ervin, commander of the American privateer Wasp, of Salem, for the very courteous, friendly and gentlemanlike treatment received while a prisoner on board, the deportment observed toward him being more like a friend and countryman than that of a declared enemy. - St. John, June 13, 1813.
The head money for Wasp was finally paid in November 1831.
On 12 July Bream took the schooner Jefferson, of 99 tons, out of Boston. Two days later Bream captured the Triton, of 122 tons, bound for Kennebeck
Kennebec River
The Kennebec River is a river that is entirely within the U.S. state of Maine. It rises in Moosehead Lake in west-central Maine. The East and West Outlets join at Indian Pond and the river then flows southward...
from St. Thomas's. On the same day she captured the Betsey, of 117 tons, from Tortola
Tortola
Tortola is the largest and most populated of the British Virgin Islands, a group of islands that form part of the archipelago of the Virgin Islands. Local tradition recounts that Christopher Columbus named it Tortola, meaning "land of the Turtle Dove". Columbus named the island Santa Ana...
and bound for Portland.
On 21 or 24 September, the Canadian privateer Dart drove the American privateer Orange, a chebacco boat of two guns and 11 men, on to Fox Island in Machias Bay
Machias Bay
Machias Bay is a bay in Washington County, Maine that opens into the Gulf of Maine.The bay was the scene of the Battle of Machias — the first naval battle of the American Revolution, occasioned by the British need for lumber for Boston....
on the coast of Maine
Maine
Maine is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the east and south, New Hampshire to the west, and the Canadian provinces of Quebec to the northwest and New Brunswick to the northeast. Maine is both the northernmost and easternmost...
.A chebacco was a narrow-sterned boat formerly used in the New England and Canadian maritime fisheries; also known as a pinkstern or chebec. There the boats of Emulous
USS Nautilus (1799)
Nautilus was a schooner launched in 1799. The United States Navy purchased her in May 1803, renaming her the USS Nautilus; she thus became the first ship to bear that name. She served in the First Barbary War. She was altered to a brigantine. The British captured Nautilus early in the War of 1812...
and Bream destroyed her.
Hare’s replacement was again Lieutenant Constantine Brown, who remained in command until 4 February 1814 when Lieutenant Thomas Beer took command in the Bay of Fundy, and served with her until he was placed on half-pay in September.
On 27 May, Bream captured the Pilgrim.
Beer commanded Bream at the capture of Moose Island (Maine) in July, and was present at the attack on Baltimore
Battle of Baltimore
The Battle of Baltimore was a combined sea/land battle fought between British and American forces in the War of 1812. It was one of the turning points of the war as American forces repulsed sea and land invasions of the busy port city of Baltimore, Maryland, and killed the commander of the invading...
on 13 September.
Bream also shared in the prize money for the ship Abeona and the schooners Franklin and Saucy Jack, which other ships had captured between 21 October and 6 November. Similarly Bream shared in the prize money for the schooner Mary and the goods from the transports Lloyd and Abeona, captured in the Chesapeake between 29 November and 19 December.
Bream was paid off in May 1815.
External links
- Michael Phillips' Ships of the Old Navy - Emulous (1812). http://www.ageofnelson.org/MichaelPhillips/info.php?ref=0836
- Michael Phillips' Ships of the Old Navy - Bream. http://www.ageofnelson.org/MichaelPhillips/info.php?ref=0387